References to polycephaly in popular culture
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Polycephaly is the condition of having more than one head. There are many occurrences of multi-headed animals or humans, in real life as well as in mythology and current popular culture.
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[edit] Film
Ray Harryhausen created several two-headed models for stop-motion animation in films. Dioskilos, the guardian of Medusa's shrine in 1981's Clash of the Titans, is a ferocious dog with two heads. The model was originally intended to have three heads but, according to Harryhausen, "looked far too grotesque and top heavy and was therefore totally unbelievable".[1] His work on The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad included a two-headed roc, and Jason and the Argonauts battled a seven-headed hydra of Harryhausen's creation.
Other occurrences of multi-headed creatures in film include:
- A three-headed monster is the subject of the 1964 film Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, the fifth film in the Godzilla series.
- Devon & Cornwall is a two-headed dragon in the 1998 film Quest for Camelot.
- Scrad/Charlie is a two-headed alien in the 2002 film Men in Black II.
Occurrences of two-headed people include:
- A boil grows into a second head in the 1989 film How to Get Ahead in Advertising.
- The head of a killer is grafted onto that of another person in the 1971 film The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant.[2]
- Ash Williams has an extra head grow on his shoulder, that eventually splits away, creating two Ashes (one "good", one "evil") in the 1993 film Army of Darkness.
- The head of a white racist is grafted onto the body of an African-American in the 1972 film The Thing with Two Heads.[3]
- Zaphod Beeblebrox has two heads in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. In the 2005 film version, the character can make his second head appear under his first head. In the radio series, books, and television series, the second head is always visible.
- A three-headed knight exists in the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
[edit] Literature
- Pushmi-pullyu is two-headed antelope in Hugh Lofting's Doctor Dolittle novels and the 1967 film.
- Zaphod Beeblebrox is a two-headed character in the The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
- Fluffy is a three-headed dog in from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
- The Su-Suheris are a multi-headed alien species in Robert Silverberg's Majipoor series.
- A two headed "mutie" Joe/Jim is a main character in Robert A. Heinlein's Orphans of the Sky.
- Pierson's Puppeteer is an alien with one brain but two heads in Larry Niven's Known Space science-fiction stories.
[edit] Fantasy settings
- Tiamat is a five-headed dragon in Dungeons & Dragons.
- Dragon Snails are two headed chaos beasts in Greg Stafford's Glorantha.
- Galrauch, First of the Chaos Dragons is a dragon with two heads in the Warhammer Fantasy.
- Two-headed Ogres exist in the Warcraft universe.
[edit] Television, toys, and comics
- Hun-Gurrr is a robot that turns into a two-headed dragon in Transformers.
- Two-headed monster is a comical purple monster in Sesame Street.
- Two-Bad is a villain in Masters of the Universe.
- Spider Jerusalem has a two-headed pet cat in the comic book Transmetropolitan.
- Charles and Mambo, are dicephalic twins in the animated series Duckman.
- Tina & Teddington Twingersnap are a two-headed snake on the animated series Viva Piñata.
- Headbanger is a two headed character created in am "atom-smasher" accident, in the animated series Toxic Crusaders.
- In the Strontium Dog comics series, a two-faced mutant criminal named Billy Joe is an enemy of Johnny Alpha and crew.
[edit] Computer and video games
- Brahmins are two-headed cows in the computer game Fallout.
- A two-headed squirrel is an important plot element in the computer game Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders.
- Two-headed wolves exist in the arcade game Altered Beast.
[edit] Other
- Pasqual Pinon, known as "The two-headed Mexican", was part of a touring freak show and faked a second head atop his own
- Neutral Milk Hotel's 1998 album "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea" features a track entitled "Two-Headed Boy"
- A few taxidermists make false two-headed pickled punks and animals.
